The recovery bag

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Coping Strategies
Part 9 - The recovery bag

When you leave your home and go out into the world, do you take a bag with you? If you do, what do you put in this bag? Does your bag contain any items that might come to your aid – if and when you need them?

The notion of carrying a “recovery bag” around with you is to help keep you safe and to help you de-stress when a situation arises, with or without warning.

We are now going to hand you over to Karen, who is going to unpack the items in her bag for you and give a rationale for carrying each of them.

Coping strategy case study: the worrier’s recovery bag

“Hi, my name is Karen. I am 45 years old and I have been consciously carrying things in my recovery bag for around 10 years now.

“I get bored very easily – like really, really bored – so now I always take a book with me when I go out, along with a couple of pages of puzzles, a pen and a small note pad, in case I have an idea that I will forget if I don’t write it down at once, or in case I want to doodle or draw something.

“A bottle of water is a must for me, as is a snack bar for some energy and an emergency chocolate, in case I’m ever feeling low and need a bit of comfort. Sometimes, instead of chocolate, I will pack a hand cream that I can use to soothe myself if I need a bit of TLC.

“I also carry a phone and a charger with me at all times, a small amount of loose change, my keys, an asthma inhaler, a photo of my daughters, a small make-up bag, a packet of tissues; and a stress ball.

“As I’m a big worrier, I like to have access to music, 24/7. As long as there is music, there is always a chance I can get myself to calm down.

“You may think that all of this weighs a ton, but it is surprisingly compact and light – or maybe I’m just used to it now. My final item is my worry doll. It is hand-made, from Guatemala. It stays with me at all times (I have 10 of them, just in case I lose one). At night, I put her under my pillow and she takes my worries away. During the day, I pick her up from time to time and hold her in my hand and silently tell her my anxieties. She’s great.”

My recovery bag

If you were to design your own recovery bag, what would you put in it?

Print off sheet

Letting go

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